DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY – COMPLETE DISAPPOINTMENT AT A “5-STAR” RESORT

I recently stayed at Barceló Maya Beach Resort for a 3-day trip, and it was an absolute disaster from the moment we checked in. I booked this resort based on the glowing 4.7-star reviews and the fact that it’s listed as a 5-star hotel on Google. That rating is completely misleading – I now believe many of those reviews must be fake. This trip was meant to be a special celebration for my friend’s birthday. Instead, it turned into a frustrating, poorly managed experience. Here’s why: • Terrib [... read more]le Transportation: No buggies available anywhere. The only shuttle bus between lobbies runs every 25 minutes, making it extremely inconvenient just to move around the resort. • Faulty Air Conditioning: Our room was hot and uncomfortable. Even after multiple complaints, nothing was done. • Staff Don’t Act on Issues: While the staff were polite, they consistently failed to take action. It felt like we were just being pacified and ignored. • The Food is a Joke: For a resort in Mexico, there was no authentic Mexican food. No tacos. No spice. No flavor. Just bland, low-quality buffet food. The “all-inclusive” option is misleading — it covers only buffet and snack bars. Most à la carte restaurants are paid, and even the paid ones were awful. • Birthday Ruined: I had arranged a birthday cake and wine through guest services, and they assured us the cake would be delivered to our room at 7 PM. We waited. No one came. At 8 PM we called to check, and they casually said the request wasn’t valid because it wasn’t made 24 hours in advance — even though they confirmed it themselves earlier! Totally unacceptable. • Beach Was Dirty: The beach was a huge letdown. It looked beautiful in the photos, but in reality, it was not clean. There were strange red deposits all along the shore – not sure what it was, but it made the water look uninviting and the experience unpleasant. • Pool Bar Chaos: The pool bar had only two staff members serving a huge crowd. We had to wait over 15 minutes just to get a drink. On a hot vacation day, that’s the last thing anyone wants. • The Only Good Thing – Spa: The spa was the only part of this resort that met expectations. Clean, professional, relaxing. Everything else was below 2-star quality. This place does not deserve a 4.7-star rating. If you’re considering it for a special occasion, please look elsewhere. I wouldn’t go back here even for free.

Overall Good Resort

Overall, my husband and I loved the resort. Its very big, so lots to do since you have access to all 5 resorts. Kept very clean and nice. A great family resort for kids. Beach is very big, lots of sand space and chairs so no issue not finding a chair. Its currently hurricane season so lots of seaweed coming in. Pools are very nice and clean. Only thing is they need more daytime entertainment and music we think. Food overall was good. A la cartes were very good - we had Mexican and Jap [... read more]anese Service was not the best. When we checked in, they gave us absolutely no details of the resort or information. Didn't give us our towel cards or direct us to our room. Then our fob didnt work so we couldnt get into the room, it was a dissappointing start. Service at buffets was quite slow. Most of the works also speak Spanish only, or English is very limited so there is definitely a language barrier. Location was nice, about 1.5 hours from the airport Overall everything was very nice, we loved it. Our only complaint would be lack of service and friendliness from the workers.

Overall Good Resort

Overall, my husband and I loved the resort. Its very big, so lots to do since you have access to all 5 resorts. Kept very clean and nice. A great family resort for kids. Beach is very big, lots of sand space and chairs so no issue not finding a chair. Its currently hurricane season so lots of seaweed coming in. Pools are very nice and clean. Only thing is they need more daytime entertainment and music we think. Food overall was good. A la cartes were very good - we had Mexican and Jap [... read more]anese Service was not the best. When we checked in, they gave us absolutely no details of the resort or information. Didn't give us our towel cards or direct us to our room. Then our fob didnt work so we couldnt get into the room, it was a dissappointing start. Service at buffets was quite slow. Most of the works also speak Spanish only, or English is very limited so there is definitely a language barrier. Location was nice, about 1.5 hours from the airport Overall everything was very nice, we loved it. Our only complaint would be lack of service and friendliness from the workers.

Mostly Good - Except the Food

Pros: + The hotel is beautiful, clean, and very well kept. + The pools are great and the beach is lovely. + Facilities are top notch. + The staff is friendly and welcoming, for the most part. Cons: - The food was sub par. Not just the buffet, also the restaurants. We were hoping for some nice dishes and fresh ingredients, but it felt like the dining experience was aimed at the lowest North American standard. Also, not everything was refilled. If you came in to eat later than 30 minutes a [... read more]fter doors opened, there were things you couldn’t get. - Shower pressure was on and off. - A lot of activities came with an additional price tag, and not a cheap one at that. - There wasn’t much to do in the evening / at night.

Very nice resort.

The resort is very nice, with a good selection of food and well-maintained grounds. However, the rooms and bathrooms could use some updates, as they have been in use for the last 25 years and are showing signs of wear. The pools are the nicest I have ever seen—very clean and spacious enough for the kids to enjoy safely. One downside was being transported to the resort in an old van from the airport, and the driver asked for a tip. While we are all prepared to tip the staff for good service,  [... read more]we do not appreciate being asked for it directly.

Amazing resort

This resort is immaculate. The grounds are prestige. There is more than enough to keep the whole family entertained. We did not feel.that we needed to go.off resort for anything. We have spent years traveling to all inclusive resorts. By far the best. For the.most part food was very good Although Spanish and surprisingly Mexican were not very good.

So much to do!

The resort grounds are beautiful with so many choices for things to do. We loved the variety of restaurants and pools and found the service very attentive. The reservation system for restaurants is a little frustrating but in the end we were able to grab 4 reservations for a la carte dinners which were all very good. We spent most of our days by the pool but the beach was just as fun. We loved walking to the pier to check out the fish. We love walking so having the mall, the mexican shop and the [... read more] mini putt, as well as access to the other 3 resorts was fantastic and having the double decker bus if we got tired was helpful as well. The rooms are dated but overall had everything we needed. We earned our meals walking up and down to the third floor each time. Overall this resort was a win!

Impossible to find a beach chair and depressing dolphin enclosure

Quite disappointing stay. If you wake up, have breakfast, and go to the beach for 8:30 am GOOD LUCK finding a chair until like 3 pm. We walked around across the entire beach and couldn’t even find one free chair. People wake up early and claim chairs with their items or beach towels. Some people don’t even show up until 11 am!! Employees weren’t very helpful and said that you can’t take a claimed chair, even if no one shows up for hours (even though there’s signs saying you can’t claim a chair). [... read more] Same situation at the pool. Had to sit on the floor with our towels. Apart from that, you walk by a sad dolphin enclosure where the dolphins swim in a small pool with no shade. Very depressing to see and it’s sad that this type of animal treatment is still present. If you search up the dolphins at this hotel, you’ll find out that a few had died here. Generally, resort was clean and well kept, but old. Our bathtub didn’t drain well when you took a shower. The beach itself is pretty nice and well kept. Food was average to good and generally a decent selection. We did get upset stomachs one day, unclear from what exactly. If you love sad dolphins and a going to war to find a place to sit during the day, this resort is a great choice for you.

Wonderful family vacation spot

Exceptional resort with professional and friendly staff. Excellent selection at the buffets which were always stocked with fresh food. Was able to book all the a la cart restaurants but must do so as soon as you check in because they fill up fast and ideal times were limited. Only issue with the room was the patio glass door, very hard to open and would slip off its tracks.

Amazing resort.

We stayed at the Barcello Maya Beach Resort located about one hour from Cancun. It is part of the Grand Maya Resort consisting of six hotels. Stay at one, play and eat at them all. The hotel and its grounds are very well kept. Staff are friendly and helpful. The buffet has everything to eat and offers a daily variance. The other speciality restaurants are all really good and have to be booked in advance. We really liked the Italian Trattoria, seafood, second Italian restaurant and the Spa [... read more]nish Il Fuente one. There are numerous, connecting pools and water parks for the children from one end of the resort to the other. You can walk from each of them or travel on the “red bus” to reach each destination.The beach and ocean was also wonderful to experience for the break from the northern climate in February. There are length pools, mini golf, basketball, shuffleboard, and. Daily activities to partake in. We loved it all!

Too big to spread out.

asked 4 times for room close to restaurants so on, because family member trouble walking given room as far away as could be told we are to busy .so my daughter gave us her room also different hotel what hotel has 400 beach chairs for 3000 guests. did nt get seat on plane that we paid 90 dollars for we waited in terminal 25 min for rep to show up . asked policeman for help . bus when found was parked 500 yard away from terminal instead of out front . when returning bus driver would not  [... read more]let my wife or my family on bus even thought all check in as requested nexus rep had to shout at him to let family on bus theres more but you live you learn ive been all round the world lived in 4 different continents. ps smaller is better.

Nice resort

The grounds are kept neatly trimmed & watered. The hallways are scrubbed daily. Rooms are a good size; a/c worked well, good shower, lots of closet space. Seaweed is raked off the beach every morning Beach chairs are scarce some days as guests at the other hotels use the beach at the Maya Beach hotel…it’s the best beach. Buffets are the usual, food is plentiful. The entertainment was disappointing compared to prior years. We found that the main & beach buffets seemed to be short  [... read more]staffed. Service was not as good as in the least, nor were they as friendly. The pool we used occasionally was big, with shallower sections. They can get quite noisy as the day goes & more drinks are consumed! We prefer the beach/ocean. The a la carte that we tried were delicious! Highly recommend the seafood one. Book as soon as you can after arrival.

Swimming with sea turtles and reef fish

We just returned from a family vacation at the Barcelo Maya Beach. We stayed in a premium king suite it included two single daybeds, which were perfect for my two girls ages eight and 10. Staff were attentive. The resort was spotless, and the food was amazing. I highly recommend this resort or any of the other Barcelo resorts on this property.

Barcelo Maya Beach

We've been to this hotel many times and it never fails to make us happy. The staff are always happy and accommodating. Pools are huge and clean. The food like pretty much all AIs, is fine. There is so much variety that you'll always find something you like. Had steak at the Japanese restaurant and it was really good! This was our first time there over the Christmas holidays, and for the first time in all of our visits, we had to play pool/ beach chair game. If you weren't up and getting a  [... read more]chair by 7:45, it was really hard to find a chair. We had a great time and will be back again.

Major sewage issues

This is my second time at this resort and probably the last. The first time, we stayed at the Maya Palace. Everything was great, except for the rooms with paper-thin walls. This time, we stayed at the Maya Beach. The bathroom was dirty and smelly. There would be a very strong smell of sewage when we turn on the tap water. There was no water in the toilet tank to flush it in the middle of the night, and it would make a lot of noise in the early hours when the tank was filling. The rooms ha [... read more]ve the same paper-thin walls as in the Maya Palace and the other hotels in the complex. My niece had to call security two nights in a row because the people above her room were partying all night. You can easily hear the conversations of your neighbours. There’s also the constant door slamming, and it’s really loud. This gets bothersome at night. The beach is beautiful with lots of palm trees, but the sewage smell is also in the ocean. I stepped on something one day (probably raw sewage) and I was immediately surrounded by a nauseating aroma. Another day, it was impossible to swim without having the smell of sewage all around us. Sewage tanks are located near the adult only pool bar El Cielito. The smell was unbearable some days. The pools are really nice. My only issue is with parents who think that’s it’s ok to let their kids play with their inflatable donuts in the lap pool. There’s only one, so leave it to the people who want to swim laps. There is a huge pool right beside it for kids to play. We enjoyed the fact that the complex wasn’t overcrowded, and we were able to reserve at some à la carte restaurants. I highly recommend the Mexican and the Traditional Japanese (and the French if staying at the Palace). Nevertheless, we made the most of our vacation. Will I come back for a third time? Unless the sewage issues are resolved, probably not.

Beautiful Resort but lack of friendly servcie/staff

The resort itself was very nice. No complaints about food and cleanliness etc. What was odd was lack of staff engagement and helpfulness. When we arrived after a long flight (it was Christmas day) nobody greeted us at the resort. There was no welcome drink etc. Nobody told us about where things were etc. In addition we couldn't even get into our rooms until 3pm. We were lucky to be able to book 4 a la carte restaurants. We were flexible around eating times. But very little availability. We didn' [... read more]t really get a lot of options for choices. Luckily all of the restaurants we went to were very good. The pool and beach area were likely our biggest issue. There were not enough lounge chairs, no sun umbrella's on the beach.. just trees. People would put towels down and leave for hours - this was not supposed to be allowed. You could not find a spot (despite signs saying this was not allowed - no staff members enforced this rule). In fact good luck finding staff. The pool bar was so understaffed. Huge lineups at the pool bar. Also there were no places where you could take food with you. They would not let you take food out of the buffet. So weird that you could not have lunch at the pool or beach. No lunch or afternoon pool side food. No drink service at the beach or pool. I've never experienced that at an all inclusive resort. Also room service was not included. It felt like staff didn't want to be there. They spoke to you only if you asked them something. At the buffet in the morning, nobody greeted you or had mimosas waiting etc. I could sit for five-10 minutes before I could get someone to take a coffee order or bring water. It was ridiculous. We did have a great vacation but not because of how staff made us feel. It's hard to complain when you are on a warm beach. We made our own fun etc. Did several excursions. I don't think I would choose this resort again.

Horrible resort

Went with a large group for a wedding, half of the group got severe food poisoning. Super unfriendly staff. Very outdated. The pools were warm and dirty, the beach was very nice. Had to walk very far for towels also, about a 1.5 hr shuttle from airport

Disappointed with Barcelo Management

We stayed at the Barcelo Beach Resort in Riviera Maya. Unfortunately we were placed in a room that had a broken air conditioner and when we brought this up with management they told us that it would be fixed. They said that the hotel is fully booked and they cant move us over to another room unless we are willing to upgrade to a premium suite. It is very dissapointing that Barcelo was not able to solve our AC issue for the entire stay and we had a temperature of 28 C in our room which was unb [... read more]earable. If it wasnt for the ceiling fan we wouldn't be able to sleep. Vey disappointed with the Barcelo staff and management who were unable to provide a solution and instead wanted to make us spend more money on a room upgrade.

Good resort

Overall we found the resort really nice. We stayed at the Maya Beach but preferred the Colonial. It has a bigger kids water park too. In terms of service sometimes the lines were too long at the buffet and the staff didn’t always come to serve us. Also the times are limited to book the a la carte restaurants which was a little frustrating. The food and drink selection was really good overall. Would definitely recommend this place. The beach had sea weed and wasn’t calm. There were a fe [... read more]w days when it wasn’t too rough and the water was great for swimming but that was only for a few days out of our entire stay.

Gone Downhill

This is my second time to this resort and I was so excited to return after having such an amazing time 4 years ago. I am extremely disappointed with this resort now. The service was terrible, most mornings my partner and I would eat a full breakfast before any server even offered us water. Bartenders are swim up bars were very slow and most wait times were around 10 min for a drink. The staff consistently seemed like we were bothering them. Heavily tipping did nothing, we were still Ignored most [... read more] of the time. We also had to beg to have our room cleaned. We stayed for 7 days and only had our room cleaned twice even though we put the “clean” sign on the door and left tips every day. I am very sad to say that I will not be returning